Cosco Holdings 2007 net profit soars 873.5%

China’s largest shipping conglomerate China Cosco Holdings said its net profit jumped by 873.5% last year to US$2.8 billion on higher shipping rates and strong export growth, the South China Morning Post reported. Sales grew by 47% to US$13.4 billion. Transpacific trade volume grew by 15.6% last year, while Asia-Europe trade growing by 12.7%. Sales on all routes grew by 17.3% to US$5.9 billion. Last year China Cosco raised over US$4 billion in an A-share listing. Analysts said the company performed within expectations but that the outlook for this year wasn’t as rosy due to rising fuel prices and economic troubles in the US.